Walter Shuffain is looking to bring on a fully remote Controller for our growing CAAS team. The Controllers at Walter Shuffain are the heart of our CAAS team. They are responsible for leading and managing the critical aspects of the engagements with our clients. This position provides the opportunity to work directly with clients, obtain exposure to a variety of industries, and the opportunity to work within a collaborative, growing and fast-paced environment with significant potential for you to grow.
This CAS Controller role is ideal for an ambitious, detail-oriented accounting professional with passion for client service and an entrepreneurial spirit. In addition to the opportunity to gain valuable experience working amongst clients varying in size and industry, this role will also provide the opportunity to work across multiple lines of service and provide high impact both to clients and our firm.
Essential Functions:
- Developing work plans, project timelines, and key milestones
- Performing/reviewing core functions of client finance and accounting operations: account reconciliations, payroll, month-end close procedures, preparation of financial statements, etc.
- Performing Outsourced Controller services
- Supervising a totally remote accounting staff, including training as needed
- Communicating frequently and effectively with client contacts
- Identifying client issues/deficiencies and assist with recommending solutions
- Overall day-to-day management and oversight of client engagements and our teams
- Onboarding new clients
- Performing/reviewing balance sheet account reconciliations
- Reviewing client financial information and general ledger detail for the purposes of completeness, accuracy, and proper account classification
- Preparing financial statements and key management reports for reporting purposes
Education, Skills and Experience:
- 8+ years of demonstrated experience in a CAS practice of a CPA firm, in the accounting department of private industry, or a combination of both
- Bachelor's Degree in Accounting or related field; CPA license preferred
- Proven track record managing both projects and people in a remote or hybrid environment
- Experience serving real estate, family office, or high-net-worth clients is a plus
- Ability to manage multiple client engagements and competing deadlines simultaneously without sacrificing accuracy or client responsiveness
- Strong working knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and financial reporting standards
- Proficiency with cloud-based accounting platforms (QuickBooks Online, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, or similar)
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate financial information for non-financial client stakeholders
- High degree of organization, self-direction, and accountability — this role operates remotely and requires someone who manages their own workload effectively
What We Do
Ascend empowers entrepreneurial CPAs to reach their goals with an innovative growth model that brings their firms into the new age. Backed by private equity from people-focused Alpine Investors, Ascend is building a modern platform for regional accounting firms that enables them to stay independent while accessing the resources of a large CPA firm to help them grow. Ascend provides access to growth capital, robust talent acquisition, best-of-breed technology, a catalytic leadership system, shared back-office services, and modernized equity incentives so that firms can surmount today’s industry challenges and reach their full potential. Founded in January 2023, the company attained revenues sufficient to qualify it as a Top 100 U.S. accounting firm within six months of operation.
